The Concert At Queens will be hosting a catering village and a traditional Funfair to compliment its summer event which is being headlined by The Boomtown Rats and Rick Astley.
Traditional Fairground rides will hurl,spin and careen revellers attending the 80's themed concert taking place on the 4th June. Hungry attendees will also be able to take advantage of the catering village which will be offering a diverse range of food from Mexican street fare to waffles, crepes, traditional fish and chips and pizzas baked in stone ovens.
The concert which will take place at Palmerston Park in Dumfries has been organised by Queen Of the South football club following the success of their Status Quo event in 2015.
Victoria Thomson who is the clubs commercial manager explained “ We have introduced the funfair and catering village to give those attending our concert a quality day out packed with funfair thrills and a great variety of food. We realise that at some point during the twelve hour concert people will want to sit and relax for a while, and for the young and young at heart they can enjoy some old style entertainment on the various funfair rides.”
Andrew Lennie from Worldwide Events who is responsible for the overall co-ordination of the Concert At Queens also added “ We have worked with the caterers and Funfair provider at a number of events around the country and they always add a certain Carnival type atmosphere to the proceedings”.
The organisers of the event were also keen to point out that the £45 adult ticket price represented great value, the cost for six acts and twelve hours of entertainment is the same asking price which people were charged in 2015 to see Status Quo and their two supporting acts.
Twelve noon is kick off time on Saturday the 4th June for the all day concert which is being headlined by Sir Bob Geldof and his fellow band members in The Boomtown Rats. Fans young and old can expect to hear such classic hits as Rat Trap, I Don't Like Mondays, Banana Republic and Someone's Looking At You, all performed by the original line up who first came to prominence in the late seventies.
Concert attendees will also get a chance to see pop legend Rick Astley perform. When he exploded onto the music scene in 1987, Rick Astley appeared fully developed with a rich tone and a soulful depth of delivery that belied his years. Following the release of his debut single “Never Gonna Give You Up”, the 21 year old became a pop sensation overnight. Within 2 weeks of its release, the single reached Number 1 in the UK, and went on to hit Number 1 in 16 other countries worldwide. The following 2 years saw Rick continue to dominate the charts around the globe. In the UK, Rick was in the Top 40 every week for the first 6 months of his career, and today still holds the record of being the only male solo artist to have his first 8 singles reach the Top Ten in the UK.
Palmerston Park will also enjoy a performance from Martin Fry and his band ABC who were one of the most popular new wave bands of the early 80's. ABC were said to have built upon the detached, synthesized R&B pop of David Bowie and Roxy Music, adding a self-conscious, sense of theatrics and style. Under the direction of vocalist Martin Fry, the group scored several catchy, synth driven dance-pop hits in the early '80s, including "Poison Arrow," "Look of Love," and "Be Near Me."
The afternoon underbill will feature three other acts, two of which are already confirmed as The Stars From The Commitments and also The Rezillos.
The Stars From The Commitments are a gritty Dublin based nine piece soul band who feature some original cast members from the popular movie The Commitments. Following it's release in 1991 it has since been voted as best Irish film of all time. Meanwhile the former cast members and other musicians have toured the world delivering a powerhouse soul set which has even impressed the likes of former American president George Bush. Event attendees can expect to hear classic tracks like Mustang Sally,Take Me To The River and Nowhere To Run.
Edinburgh punk rockers The Rezillos first appeared on the scene in the late 70's and immediately stood apart from their more nihilistic contemporaries by performing an upbeat play-list which is heavily influenced by 50's rock and 70's glam. They once appeared on a prime time music television show called Top of the Pops ironically to perform their hit single also called Top of the Pops . Winners of the Tartan Clef Award and support act for The Proclaimers at Edinburgh's world famous Hogmanay celebrations, it is fair to say that The Rezillos are fondly regarded throughout their native Scotland.
Published on 23 March 2016 by Ben Robinson
